Baby Formula is Not Rat Poison

Ok the problem here is the association with formula=bad mother and breasfeeding=good mother. I think most everyone would agree that just because you use formula, that doesn't mean your a bad mother or a "selfish hussie". How silly! There ARE good, wonderful mothers who have to use formula over breast for work or physical or whatever reasons. BUT there are those mothers who choose formula over breast because they are afraid of sagging breasts and because they simply don't want to take the time and do it. Yes breastfeeding hurts for the first week or two, but under normal circumstances, that should go away (unless you have clogged ducts or other problems..but these are the exception, not the rule). I have a 9 month old and am still breastfeeding her all the time (although I have been started on solids for about 3 months now). But I am blessed to be a stay-at-home mom and have a healthy enough body to produce rich milk for my girl. Not everyone does and that's ok, but its crazy to say that formula has just the same or more benefits than breast milk. It may have benefits, and I'm sure it's good for your baby, but breast is always best. That's like saying that an immitation apple has just the same benefits of a real apple. Nothing man creates is ever better than what God has already created and that's the core of it. So breast feed if you can, it's natural - so of course it's the most beneficial. But if you can't, it's ok too. Just remember, people do what they want to do and where there is a will there is usually a way, except for that rare exception where medical reasons are involved.

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Well ,for one ,I think she is getting a little to sensitve to the fact of so many speaking FOR breastfeeding and the benefits of it . I do not believe people like the author are getting blasted for NOT breastfeeding I think she merely is convicted in herself about it !
That aside ,It is a God given,scientifically prooven FACT that Breastfeeding is FAR more healthy for the infant than ANY synthetic ! And anything she could say would be mere coverup and excuse for moms not willing to take the time w/their infants .
While more and more moms have to work,there is NO reason why they cannot pump and bottle Gods natural baby food .
I do understand there are physical problems that arise either in the mother or infant for reason not to breast feed . For that I say choose the best posssible sythetic formula you can come up with . Better yet if possible find another lactating mom w/an abundance and see if she will bottle hers for you !

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Oh give me a break... not being comfortable huddling in a coat closet, where anyone could walk in, pumping milk out of your breasts disqualifies you from being a "good mother"? Sorry, being a sanctimonious, hyperbolic prigg disqualifies you from being a good mother. You might teach your children those awful qualities and Lord knows we have enough d-bags in this world.

BTW-I breastfed my children.

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It's not always the mothers' choice - when I was a newborn my Mom was out cold from the episiotomy anesthesia for the first 24 hours of my life. This was in 1961, by the way. When the nurses tried to feed me, and later, Mom did, everything, including breast milk made me ill. The only thing I could keep down was a soy-based formula. That never stopped us from bonding - she cuddled and cared for me 24/7. No one could have asked for a better parent.

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My two babies were both bottle fed formula. My husband loved bonding with his babies by giving occasional bottles to them, in the rocking chair. They both grew up at the head of their class, and perfectly well-adjusted. I was bottle fed and I have an IQ of 159, no allergies or illnesses.

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Sorry that I was too stupid and had Preeclampsia and was on a medicine that dried up my breast milk! I tried to breast feed and had a scereaming baby at my breast and NO MILK coming out! My baby was born 5 weeks early after the placenta partially separated and I was on Magnesium Sulfate through an IV, one of the side effects was that it dries up breastmilk, which I didn't find out about after I left the hospital and did research. My daughter is now 11 years old, and has only had one ear infection when she was 4 or 5. She has had no other problems from not being breastfed. People need to do their research more thoroughly before condemning all those who don't breastfeed!

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I became a mother in 1979. I will never feel guilty or apologetic for not breast feeding. I simply had no desire to and that's that.

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Both of my children, now in their 20's, were formula feed babies. Everyone told me what a mistake I was making and how sick my children would be because they weren't building their immunity through breast milk. My son had 1 ear infection, chicken-pox, and 1 case of strep throat. My daughter had chicken-pox and 1 case of strep throat. Only 5 sick visits to the pediatrician in 27 years. I'm so glad I didn't listen to all the experts.

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I for one, am glad to finally see an article that focuses on some of the real issues breast feeding moms face. I wanted to breastfeed in order to provide the medical benefits to my child. However, the stress of trying to breastfeed while working a 60-70 hour week and basically locking myself in spare office to pump between meetings proved to be doing more harm than good. At the end of the day I found I was exhausted and frustrated which took away from my ability to simply relax and spend quality time with my daughter. So, I switched to formula and never looked back. I have absolutely no regrets. My non-breastfead child is now a thriving 4 1/2 year old. She hasn't had any issues with ear infections or diahrea. She is extremely intelligent and emotionally sound. I think the most important thing to focus on is spending good, quality time with your child.

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Okay I am on both sides of the aisle. When I was pregnant, I made the decision to exclusively breastfeed my daughter. I did so up until she was about 4 weeks old, and then I started having production issues. So I begin pumping every chance I got and then breastfeeding. Even doing that didn't help increase production. And my daughter was always hungry. So i started supplementing with 2-4 oz bottle of Similac EasyShield Advance formula (similar to breastmilk... but not quite) and then the rest of the feedings were just breastmilk. Again, she still was getting enough, but I went on breast feeding and supplementing until she was 6 wks old. Then just switched her to just formula. I tried. I tried my damn hardest, that doesn't make me selfish just because (even with constant pumping) i still was not able to keep up with my daughter's big appetite. My daughter is 9 months old and has yet to get get sick. No colds, nothing. She is in the 90th percentile in height and weight. (20lbs 30 inches tall) healthy and happy and intelligent. So don't pass judgement unless you know the full story. I always encourage mothers to breastfeed. It is very beneficial to the mother and the baby. It broke my heart when I stopped breastfeeding... it even made me cry. But my daughter is healthy, and that is all that matters.

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Breastfeeding is only challenging if you are lazy. And THAT is the truth. If there is any one thing to blame other than that, it is societal views of puritantical America that put people off of breastfeeding. It is as natural as can be, healthier for a baby that all the fake crap in formula. (How anyone can equate the health benefits of formula is ridiculous. No matter what, it is man-made and not "all natural" which we know for a fact to be better for us in the short and long run.
No it isn't exactly "fun" to use a breast pump but good ones are fast (faster than doing the actual nursing). So what if your coffee break is spent finding a private place to pump? You had the baby, now it is up to you to give that baby the best of everything that you can and the easiest and the cheapest just happens to be breast milk. Six months out of your life nursing a child or pumping for breast milk is a drop in the bucket. Again: easy, cheap and responsible.

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Jennifer - I hope that your wish to breast feed your children comes true for you. I am now a grandmother who tried very hard to breast feed my children. However no matter what my physician and I tried, I was unabale to produce enough milk.. They HAVE, however, grown up to become loving, supportive, successful and happy adults with familys of their own. Please try to remember that some of us don't breast feed becaause we don't WANT TO, but because we CAN'T. Perhaps with a little more maturity you will be able to see both sides of the question.

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Breastfeeding needs to be viewed as normal, not going above and beyond. I don't understand why it's not looked at as the next natural step after giving birth rather than a lofty goal unattainable or undesirable. Breastmilk has what a baby is designed to have. Formula is acceptable, but it will never be equal. That's not a judgment, just fact.

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I had 3 sons (MANY years ago!), but the debate was still going on then. To breast feed or not to breast feed. When my first son was born in 1964 (I was just barely 19), the nurses kept bugging me about whether or not I was going to breast feed and I finally got frustrated and said no. So--son number 1 was not breast fed.

Son #2 was born in 1972 and this time I breast fed. However, my milk dried up and went away (I have no idea why) after 2 months, so I switched to formula. Same scenario with son #3 born in 1982. All 3 had the same health problems (ie colds, sniffles, etc.) and I saw no difference in any of them getting sick more often than the others did.

So glad for this article! I hope it makes an impression on women who are trying to decide whether or not to breast feed.

I now have 3 grandchildren and one great grandchild. My oldest granddaughter just gave birth to my great grandson in February and my youngest son welcomed his second child (a son) end of March. My granddaughter decided not to breast feed. My youngest son's wife breast fed my granddaughter (age 4) and my newly arrived grandson. The one thing not mentioned in this article is the fact that if you do not breast feed, then dad gets a chance to feed the baby and bond with him/her. If the baby is breast fed, its only the mom who is spending extra time bonding with the baby.

Don't be intimidated! Make your own choice. Whatever you decide is the right decision!

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what a bunch of mean women. A sense guilt in there somewhere.

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I like the *phrasing* of the study that the author quotes: "...illnesses that they MIGHT have fought off....." MIGHT, not WOULD HAVE fought off!! How they can even call that a "study" is beyond me. I wonder how many breast-fed babies get rotted-out teeth from being attached to the breast day and night, exposing their teeth to breastmilk 24 hours a day? Do they do studies that say "911 kids who have rotten teeth MIGHT not have had rotten teeth if they had been bottle-fed"?? Breastmilk is the *ideal* food for newborns, but feeding a child formula is not like giving them bottled water, for God's sake. I know that there are women out there that trash mothers for giving their kids formula in bottles all the time---everybody has a right to their own opinion. The bottom line is that it is very difficult for a working mother to breastfeed past 3 or 6 months. The workplace does not make pumping conducive to getting your job done, nor do your co-workers appreciate you being in the bathroom for half-an-hour while they are working. Millions upon millions of children/adults/people have been formula-fed and they are perfectly fine. The problem is that these *militant* pro-breast mamas have to realize that there are CHOICES in life, and this is one of them!! Just because they choose to have a little eating machine hanging off their boobs 15 times a day doesn't mean that everybody else does too!! And then you have the mothers who breast feed until the child reaches puberty (well, almost!!), and they condone that practice, saying that there is nothing wrong with having an 8 year old that breastfeeds, and that their children are "independent" and "well-adjusted". Well, any kid that is 8 years old and still breastfeeding is not *independent" and "well-adjusted" in my book!! But, this is how the world spins around---different strokes for different folks!! And it will always be this way!!

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Everyone has an opinion don't they? Usually I am not the type of person to comment on this sort of thing but i now feel the need. For all of you women who are not mothers, have not had children, and do not breast feed, shut up. For all of you MEN who feel that you have status to give your input on this matter, well, you all may shut the hell up. If you are not a mother with a child that needs feeding, you have no place to tell anyone what is better, what they should do, or how to do it. You are completely unaware of the complication, pain, and inconvinience that it brings. After carrying a child for nine months do you think breastfeeding all the time sounds like a nice vacation? Well, it honestly doesn't matter what you think because I am almost positive that as humans most of us are capable of making decisions on our own. Oh right, and for you men? Boobless humans? Im quite certain no one gives a damn what you have to say seeing as clearly you have no way of knowing what it is like either. Even after all of this, what I say does not matter either beacuse mothers will mother their children the way they please. None of us are perfect and the raising of a child is never perfect either. You want to breastfeed? Kudos. Pat yourself on the back because no one else is going to. You want to bottle feed? That is also your very own personal decision, and no one else has effect on that. I am sixteen years old and have a wider vision than most of you who should be wiser at this point. In the end we are still an overpopulated race with more important things to worry about. Waste your time on something else than chewing each other out, in the end we make decisions for ourselves.

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